Apparatus and method for cutting and spooling a web of paper

ABSTRACT

An apparatus 15 and method for cutting a travelling paper web 20 winding on a spool 21 and transferring web 20 onto an empty spool 23 by attaching a cutting tape to empty spool 23, characterized by: 
     (1) a tape dispenser 16 supplying repulpable paper fiber stiff tape 24; 
     (2) an elongated guideway 28 having an open end 49 through which tape 24 is fed to the opposite end 50, the ends being adjacent the side edges of web 20; 
     (3) a cutter 38 to partially cut the tape 24 adjacent end 49; and 
     (4) a friction brake 39 engaging tape 24 between the cutter 38 and end 49 to cause tape 24 to completely sever thereat as the tape is spirally wound about the empty spool.

TECHNICAL FIELD

This invention relates to an apparatus and method for cutting atravelling web of paper being wound on one spool and transferring theweb to an empty spool while the web is travelling.

BACKGROUD ART

It is a general practice in the paper industry to produce a continuoussheet or web of paper which is wound onto large spools. In order to havea continuous operation it is, of course, necessary to have a system forinstantaneously switching from winding the web of paper onto a full rollto an empty roll, particularly at modern speeds of paper production. InU.S. Pat. No. 2,461,246 there is shown a method of feeding a tape ontothe rotating empty roll core and causing it to be spirally wrapped onthat core as it stretches tight across the travelling web of paper andcuts the paper, with the cut edge being led onto the empty rollsupported by the cutting tape. Subsequent improvements have dealt withmethods of stringing the tape for cutting and feeding, and the use ofvarious types of tapes, as shown for example in U.S. Pat. No. 3,599,888.A more recent improvement is found in U.S. Pat. No. 4,414,258 wherethere is described a tape made of repulpable paper woven into a tapewhich did not interfere with the paper making process since the paperwound adjacent the roll is waste and is recycled.

It is an object of this invention to provide an improved apparatus forcutting a paper web and transferring the cut portion to an empty spool.It is another object to provide such a system employing an improvedrepulpable paper tape. Still another object is to provide asubstantially automatic feeding apparatus for introducing the tape tothe empty spool. Other objects will appear from the more detaileddescription which follows.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to an apparatus for cutting a travelling web ofpaper being wound on a first spool and transferring that travelling webonto an empty spool by attaching a cutting tape to the empty spool, theapparatus characterized by:

(1) means for supplying a length of repulpable paper fiber stiff tape;

(2) an elongated guideway with an elongated open slot facing upwardlybeneath said travelling web and having opposite open ends adjacent theside edges of said travelling web, the guideway receiving the tapedelivered slidingly into one open end and exiting out of the other openend; and

(3) a brake means frictionally engaging the tape.

The apparatus also includes a dispenser having a continuous length ofcutting tape wound on a rotatable drum and being thin and stiff andbeing formed of a plurality of lengthwise parallel strands of twistedrepulpable paper fibers laid side-by-side and bonded to each other by awater-soluble adhesive and being one strand in thickness. A cutter isprovided between the brake means and the drum for cutting laterallyacross the tape to partially sever the strands. The brake means islocated between the guideway and drum and includes an underneathsupporting surface and an upper pressure surface adjustable to provideselective frictional resistance to the passage of the tape therebetween.The tape completely severs upon the passage of the partially severedstrands between the brake means and the ends of the guideway as the tapeis being spirally wound about the empty spool.

This invention also relates to an improved method for cutting atravelling web of paper being wound on a spool and transferring the webafter cutting to an empty spool, the method including a cutting tapeattachable to the empty spool, the tape automatically being woundspirally about the empty spool and cutting the web of paper, and windingthe cut portion of the paper web onto the empty spool; the improvementcomprises:

(1) feeding the free end of a stiff paper tape into the near end of anelongated guideway beneath the travelling web and extending beyond bothends of the empty spool;

(2) extending the free end of the tape from the far end of the guideway;

(3) adhering the free end to the edge of the empty spool;

(4) partially cutting laterally through the tape adjacent the near endof the guideway; and

(5) applying frictional resistance to the tape between the cut and theguideway to cause the partially cut tape to become completely severed bythe pulling of the tape caused by winding thereof on the empty roll.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The novel features believed to be characteristic of this invention areset forth with particularity in the appended claims. The inventionitself, however, both as to its organization and method of operation,together with further objects and advantages thereof, may best beunderstood by reference to the following description taken in connectionwith the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the system of rollers employed in thepaper industry to wind the paper web onto rolls, and the presentapparatus used to cut the web and transfer the cut edge to an emptyspool in accord with this invention.

FIG. 2 is an enlarged side elevational view of a portion of theapparatus of FIG. 1 partly cut away for clarity of illustration.

FIG. 3 is a front elevational view of the apparatus of FIG. 2.

FIG. 4 is a top plan view of the apparatus of FIG. 2.

FIG. 5 is a front elevational view of the tape cutting means of thisinvention.

FIG. 6 is a side elevational view of the tape cutting means of FIG. 5.

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view of the brake means taken along line 7,8--7, 8 of FIG. 4.

FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view of an alternate embodiment of the brakemeans, showing the inoperable position in broken lines, and taken alongline 7, 8--7, 8 of FIG. 4.

FIG. 9 is a partial isometric view of the tape supply drum of thisinvention.

FIG. 10 is a partial cross-sectional view taken along line 10--10 ofFIG. 9.

FIG. 11 is an isometric view of another embodiment of the apparatus inaccord with this invention.

FIG. 12 is a top plan view of the apparatus of FIG. 11.

FIG. 13 is an isometric view of another embodiment of the guidewayportion of this invention.

FIG. 14 is a top plan view of the guideway of FIG. 13.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION AND BEST MODE OF THE INVENTION

The general features of this invention are best seen and understood byreference to FIG. 1 which shows some of the equipment employed in apaper manufacturing plant to wind up the manufactured paper on rolls forstorage and use elsewhere. A continuous web of paper 20 travels at arelatively rapid rate of speed to a combination of spools upon which thepaper is rolled. Paper web 20 advances toward tension roll 102, mountedin journals on supports 47, leading web 20 over driving roll 22 andwinding about spool 21 turning in the direction of arrow 25. Drivingroll 22 turns in the direction of arrow 26 and is pressed against thepaper roll on spool 21 causing it to rotate in the indicated direction.When spool 21 has been filled to the desired capacity with paper fromweb 20, it is necessary to cut web 20 laterally, transfer the cut edgeto an empty spool, and start the web winding on that spool to eventuallyproduce another filled spool, such as spool 21. Empty spool 23 ispositioned vertically above the location shown in FIG. 1 until it isready to accept paper from web 20 and begin winding it up. In order tocause empty spool 23 to begin rotating and to accept the cut edge of web20, it is necessary to lower spool 23 until it contacts driving roll 22,as shown in FIG. 1, and then to introduce the cut edge of web 20 intothe nip 52 between empty spool 23 and driving roll 22 and to cause atransfer of the paper web thereto.

The apparatus of this invention is generally indicated by referencenumeral 15 which is a means in the form of a dispenser 16 forintroducing a tape to the far edge of empty spool 23 and causing thattape to wrap around spool 23 in a spiral fashion, and, in so doing, cutweb 20 and cause the cut edge to be introduced onto spool 23 and totransfer the cut web 20 to become wrapped about spool 23. A supply ofcutting tape 24 is preferably maintained on a removable drum 37 in ahousing 40 which also serves to support a cutting means 38 which, at theappropriate time, cuts tape 24 from the large supply on drum 37. It willbe appreciated that only a finite length of tape, longer than the widthof web 20, is needed to cut across web 20 laterally and to cause the cutedge to begin wrapping itself upon empty spool 23, and thus at theappropriate place tape 24 is cut and further tape is not needed untilspool 23 becomes filled with paper and must be replaced by another emptyspool. Tape 24 passes through cutting means 38 and into a guideway 28propelled by a driving means operated by a hand crank 43 to cause thefree end of tape 24 to move completely across the width of web 20underneath that web in guideway 28 until it reaches the far end 50 wherethe free end 51 of tape 24 is made available to be inserted into nip 52between spool 23 and driving roll 22. Preferably, an adhesive is appliedto the tape 24 at free end 51 so that when it is introduced into nip 52it will adhere to the surface of empty spool 23. A frictional resistanceis then applied to the tape adjacent near end 49 to cause the tape tospiral across the length of empty spool 23 and cut through web 20 as itdoes so and causes a transference of the web 20 onto empty roll 23.

In FIGS. 2, 3, and 4 there are shown some of the details of theapparatus in accord with this invention. Drum 37 holds a coiled supplyof a continuous, rolled up length of tape 24 supported on removable andrefillable drum 37. Drum 37 is more clearly shown in FIGS. 9 and 10 andincludes two telescoping sections 17 and 18, section 18 including flange87 connected to outer cylindrical body 89 and section 17 includingflange 88 connected to inner smaller cylindrical body 91. When sections17 and 18 are telescoped together, as shown in FIG. 9, a flanged drum isformed having a cylindrical body upon which the coil of tape 24 issupported. Tape 24 is a stiff paper tape, hereinafter more fullydescribed, and the inner end 93 of the coil of tape is preferablydoubled back onto itself and attached by any suitable means. Thecylindrical bodies 89 and 91 include respective transverse slots 90 and92 through which the portion of the tape adjacent the doubled back endportion 93 may slide edgewise into slot 90 of outer cylindrical body 89and the inner cylindrical body 91 may be slipped within cylindrical body89 and slot 92 will slide on either side of doubled back end portion 93,slots 90 and 92 being aligned when cylindrical bodies 89 and 91 aretelescoped together. This completes the assembly of drum 37 and permitsthe unwinding of tape 24 from the outer free end of the tape coil.

Referring again to FIGS. 2-4, housing 40 comprises two parallel plates110 and 111 forming walls separated by spacer bolts 59 and held in placeby spacer bar 58. Drum 37 is mounted in housing 40 to be rotatable aboutshaft 56 through drum 37 by means of journals 57. Each journal 57 is arectangular block having a central hole 109 to receive shaft 56 andhaving two of its opposite sides fashioned with elongated slots 95 thatare substantially the same thickness as the plate walls 110 and 111 ofhousing 40. An appropriate notch 94 is cut at an angle into the platewalls 110 and 111 of housing 40, and these notches 94 are of a size tomate with slots 95 so as to receive slidable journals 57 thereinto. Itwill be appreciated that this arrangement permits a rapid removal ofdrum 37 when it is necessary to fill it with another roll of tape 24. Inorder to provide some protection against dirt and moisture, and also toprovide a resistance to the free rotation of drum 37, a weighted cover60-63 is provided to fit over the roll of tape 24 supported on drum 37.This cover 60-63 includes a rigid metal plate 61 attached to housing 40by a hinge 60 and a fabric, e.g., felt, canvas or the like, attached tometal plate 61 with the opposite end of fabric 62 having attachedthereto a small weight 63 to maintain fabric portion 62 in place drapedover the top of the roll of tape 24 in drum 37. The fabric portion 62will provide sufficient frictional resistance to prevent drum 37 fromspinning too easily and thereby unwinding more of tape 24 from drum 37than is needed at any one time.

Tape 24 leaving drum 37 is directed through an inverted U-bolt initialguide 103 attached to the support 104 to cause tape 24 to becomecentered in the main guideway 75 located before the cutting means 38. Itwill be appreciated that as tape 24 unwinds from drum 37 it will comefrom different directions off drum 37 as it approaches guide 103 whichinitially guides the tape toward the main guideway 75 to cause anaccurate cut therethrough. Tape 24 passes through cutting means 38 whichis manually operated to cut through the tape at this location whendesired as hereinafter more fully described. Tape 24 passes beyondcutting means 38 around idler roll 50 and thence is directed over driveroll 41 into the end of guideway 28. Idler roll 55 and idler roll 50 areboth flanged rolls to accommodate the tape thickness and to guide same.Idler roll 55 is biased downwardly and toward drive roll 41 and pressestape 24 against drive roll 41 and rotation of roll 41 causes theadvancement of tape 24 beyond drive roll 41 into and through guideway28. The pressure of roll 55 against drive roll 41 is adjustable byspring means 107 in the form of springs adjustably compressed by screwsagainst shaft 108 movable in slots 113 in each of walls 110 and 111.These adjustable spring means 107 are shown to be located at each end ofshaft 108 attached to housing 40.

Any type of drive means to rotate drive roll 41 is operable although itis preferred to employ a simple manual means such as that shown whereina driving pulley 44 and handle 43 drive belt 45 which in turn drivespulley 64 attached to shaft 108 for rotating drive roll 41, and therotation of pulley 44 provides the necessary driving force to move tape24 to the proper position within guideway 28. Tape 24 after it passesdrive roll 41 passes through brake means 39 and thence into the longstretch of guideway 28 that extends laterally across and underneathpaper web 20 (as shown in FIG. 1). Brake means 39 applies a frictionalresistance to the sliding of tape 24 through guideway 28 and thisfrictional resistance is to provide the tension on tape 24 needed tocause it to cut through paper web 20. Because the width of paper web 20is a substantial distance, it is preferred to support guideway 28 on arelatively rigid structure 46 so that guideway 28 will not sag orvibrate to such an extent that it might impair the movement of tape 24therethrough and/or out the open slot 101. Support 46 may be anyreasonably rigid nonsagging structure such as an I-beam, an H-beam, arectangular tube, or other structure well known in the art. Since thetape 24 must be pulled out of guideway slot 101 as it cuts the paperweb, this frictional resistance may, in some instance, be sufficientwithout resort to a separate brake means 39 as shown and describedhereinafter.

In FIGS. 5 and 6 the cutting means 38 in accord with this invention ismore clearly illustrated. For a full understanding thereof a descriptionof the structure of the stiff tape 24 used in this invention isnecessary. Tape 24, as shown in FIGS. 5, 11, 12, 13, and 14, ismanufactured entirely of repulpable paper fiber which is twisted intoseparate strands and a plurality of the strands are laid togetherside-by-side in a lengthwise parallel abutting relationship and adheredto each other by a water-soluble adhesive to produce the tape.Preferably the tape is one strand thick and several strands wide. Thetape, for example, may be 0.5-1.0 inch wide and 0.02-0.05 inch inthickness which results in a tape of 10-20 strands, each about 0.02-0.05inch in diameter. When tape 24 is cut in accord with the method and useof cutting means 38 of this invention, it is preferred not to cutcompletely through the tape, but only to partially sever the tape. Whilesuch partial severing can be accomplished in perhaps several differentways, it is preferred to sever the tape by cutting completely throughall of the strands by a lateral cut, except for the edges of the tapewhich generally are the two outside strands of the tape by the cuttingmeans 38 illustrated in FIGS. 5 and 6.

Cutting means 38 includes a guillotine knife blade 65 which is generallywide enough to cut through tape 24 except for the two outer strands.Knife blade 65 operates by moving reciprocally up and down in a groove105 in guide housing 72 having an internal channel 110 through whichsliding block 71 reciprocates. Knife blade 65 is affixed to block 71 bymeans of screw 76 so that blade 65 moves up and down as block 71 movesup and down. Guide housing 72 rests on base 73 through which knife bladeguide 74 passes at right angles to feed slot 75 which guides tape 24through base 73. Channel 110 has a reasonably close fit with block 71 soas to accurately guide the knife blade 65 to cut through tape 24 withgood accuracy which is enhanced by knife blade guide 74. Shaft 66 isattached to block 71 by means of screw 77 and provides the implementingmeans by which knife blade 65 is manually moved to cut tape 24. Shaft 66extends upwardly and terminates in handle 69 which is in any convenientshape for manually pushing knife blade 65 through tape 24. Shaft 66 ismounted in shaft guide 70 and it is biased upwardly by compressionspring 67 operating toward the lower shoulder of guide 70 and engagingagainst washer 68 which is affixed to shaft 66. Accordingly, as shaft 66is pressed downwardly to its cutting operable position, spring 67 iscompressed, and when the force on handle 69 is released, spring 67pushes shaft 66 upwardly to its upward position shown in FIGS. 5 and 6.

In FIGS. 7, 8, and 11 the constructional details of brake means 39 aremore clearly shown for providing a frictional resistance to the movementof tape 24 to restrain it from sliding too freely through guideway 28and to cause the partially severed tape to become fully separated as thecut tape passes brake means 39. The brake means 39 includes a supportingstructure 46 underneath guideway 28 which carries tape 24. A pressuremember 78 is pivoted about pin 99 so as to provide more or less pressureupon tape 24 as it passes over a supporting solid surface, which may bea roller 84, as shown in FIG. 7, or a solid flat surface or wear pad 112of guideway 28, as shown in FIG. 8. Pin 99 is attached to leg 79 on eachend of pressure member 78. Pressure member 78 preferably is anonrotatable fixed surface, but it may be a roller. Pressure member 78is fixed to legs 79 which in turn are fixed to adjustment screw holder81 through which adjustment screw 80 is threadedly engaged. As themovable components of brake means 39 are rotated about pin 99, it maytake any position from that shown in solid lines to that shown in brokenlines 86 in FIG. 8. Side walls 96 are attached to guideway 28 or to itssupport 46 and serve as a support for brake means 39. Pin 99 is attachedto walls 96 by means of tension springs 98 which are attached at theirlower ends to walls 96. Slot 97 is provided in walls 96 to accommodatethe movement of pin 99 as the structure is rotated about pin 99 in itsvarious positions during the operation illustrated in FIG. 7. When thisstructure is rotated to the broken line position 86, as shown in FIG. 8,no frictional resistance is applied to tape 24 and it is easily threadedthrough guideway 28 from one end to the other. After tape 24 has beenthreaded through the length of guideway 28 and is ready to be attachedto the empty spool 23, the movable portion of brake means 39 is rotatedback to the position shown in solid lines in FIG. 8 to cause tape 24 tobe impeded in its movement in the direction of arrow 114. Adjustmentscrew 80 acts against stop 82 and by adjustment of screw 80 more or lessfrictional resistance can be applied to tape 24, when it is in theposition shown in FIG. 8. Tension springs 98 apply the necessary forceto pull the movable portion of brake means 39 down against tape 24through guideway 28. It is desirable to employ a stop pin 83 to preventthe brake structure from tilting any farther backward than that shown indotted lines 86 so as not to interfere with the threading of tape 24through guideway 28. With tape 24 threaded completely through the lengthof guideway 28 and in place for attachment to empty spool 23 as shown inFIG. 1, the movable portion of brake means 39 is rotated to the positionshown in solid lines in FIG. 8 and the tape is partially severed bycutting means 38 prior to the free end 51 of tape 24 being attached tospool 23. The frictional resistance applied by brake means 39 issufficient, when tape 24 is attached to spool 23, to strip tape 24 outof upper open slot 101 in guideway 28 from its far end 50 back towardits near end 49 as the rotation of empty spool 23 causes tape 24 tospiral across and about the spool 23 from far end 50 to near end 49. Thetension provided by brake means 39 causes tape 24 to be sufficientlytaut and thus to provide a cutting edge for cutting through paper web20. The partial severing of tape 24 by cutting means 38 permits thepulling of tape 24 behind the cut portion through the idler rolls 50 and55 in housing 40 toward brake means 39 without rupture of the uncutstrands of tape 24 until that cut portion passes completely throughbrake means 39. The tension on tape 24 is then sufficient to rupture thefinal uncut edge strands of tape 24 and thus sever the tape to await itsnext use when an empty spool again must be fed with a cut portion ofpaper web 20 by another length of tape 24.

In FIGS. 11 and 12 there is shown another simplified embodiment of thisinvention wherein brake means 39, as described previously in connectionwith FIGS. 7 or 8, is attached adjacent the end of guideway 28 supportedon structure 46 and receiving a tape 24 that passes through cuttingmeans 38 to be cut, as described previously in connection with FIGS. 5and 6. Primarily this embodiment eliminates any particular structure fordispensing a supply of tape 24 on drum 37 and the driving means to pushtape 24 through the channel in guideway 28. Tape 24 is reasonably stiffand can readily be pushed through guideway 28 by hand, if desired, andpermits any type of supply of tape 24 to be pushed through cutting means38 and brake means 39 and across the lateral width of travelling web ofpaper 20. The free end of tape 24 at the far end of guideway 28 can thenbe removed by hand, be coated with an adhesive, and be ready to beapplied by hand to the edge of empty spool 23. Tape 24 is then cut bycutting means 38 for a sufficient distance longer than that required tostretch across web 20 to provide the necessary length for spirallingaround spool 23 and to cut completely across web 20. Normally, thisextra length is about 3-4 feet longer than the length of spool 23.

In FIGS. 13 and 14 there is shown another embodiment of guideway 28 inwhich one of the shoulders of guideway 28 is movable to provide easierstripping of tape 24 from the channel in guideway 28. In eitherembodiment of guideway 28 it should be made entirely of a resilientplastic material, such as polyethylene. The guideway is made with aninternal lengthwise slot which is slightly wider than the width of tape24 and with a solid lower surface to the guide channel. An open slot 101along the upper surface of the channel provides two inwardly directedshoulders for preventing tape 24 from easily jumping out of the channeland yet slot 101 is sufficiently wide to permit tape 24 to become bentalong its strand longitudinal axis and to be stripped out of the channelby force when it is applied to empty spool 23. Particularly if guideway28 is made of aluminum or other rigid material, the embodiment in FIGS.13 and 14 may be necessary. Guideway 28 of FIGS. 13 and 14 has twoinwardly directed shoulders 29 and 30, the former being a fixed shoulderand the latter being a movable shoulder. The open portion betweenshoulders 29 and 30 is slot 101. Shoulder 30 is formed by a plate 113which has a plurality of slots 31 in it at spaced intervals with pins 32attached to the main body of guideway 28 cooperating with slots 31 topermit shoulder 30 to move laterally the distance of the length of slot31. In order to maintain the shoulder 30 in its proper positioning untiltape 24 is stripped therefrom, there are added leaf springs 33 in spacedintervals to maintain shoulder 30 in its most inward position until tape24 is pulled out from the channel as shown in FIG. 13. A taper isprovided at each of the inlet and outlet ends of guideway 28 alongshoulders 29 and 30, as shown at 100, to provide an easy entrance forfeeding tape 24 therein and to facilitate the stripping of tape 24 fromthe channel of guideway 28.

The improved method in accord with this invention includes the feedingof the free end of a stiff paper tape 24 into one end 49 of an elongatedguideway 28 placed beneath and laterally across the travelling web ofpaper 20 and extending substantially the width of the empty spool 23 towhich the travelling web 20 is to be attached. The free end 51 of thetape 24 is extended or removed from the far end 50 of the guideway 28and adhered to the edge of the empty spool 23, and frictional resistanceis applied to the removal of the tape 24 from the guideway 28. Theadhesion of the tape 24 to the spool 28 combined with the frictionalresistance causes the tape 24 to spiral around the empty spool 23 as thespool rotates, and the spiralling causes the tape 24 to travel acrossthe face of the empty spool cutting through the travelling web of paperas it does so and transfers the web onto spool 23. If the tape is in acontinuous length if will have been partially severed before thefrictional resistance is applied to the tape and before adhering thefree end 51 to spool 23. As the tape 24 spirals across the length of theempty spool 23, it is under sufficient tension to strip it from theguideway 28 through open slot 101, cut the web of paper 20, and guidethat cut edge to become transferred to the empty spool to start thewrapping of the web thereonto. The partially cut tape is automaticallysevered completely when that cut portion passes through the frictionalres:stance and is subjected to the full force of the tension of the tape24. It is particularly important in the preferred method of thisinvention to support the stiff repulpable paper tape in a guideway 28completely across the width of the paper web and to partially cutthrough the tape before applying a frictional resistance to the passageof the tape as it is pulled through the guideway by the tape spirallingonto the empty spool 23, and then automatically completely rupturingtape 24 when the partial cut portion passes through the frictionalresistance location.

It is to be understood that the dispenser 16 may be converted into apower assisted or operated one without departing from the scope orspirit of the invention. For example, an electric motor could beemployed for the hand crank 43 and a solenoid or pneumatic cylinder andpiston may be used to power the cutting means 38. In this manner aperson could control the apparatus remotely even from the side oftravelling web 20 opposite to the location of the dispensing apparatus16.

While the invention has been described with respect to certain specificembodiments, it will be appreciated that many modifications and changesmay be made by those skilled in the art without departing from thespirit of the invention. It is intended, therefore, by the appendedclaims to cover all such modifications and changes as fall within thetrue spirit and scope of the invention.

What is claimed as new and what is desired by Letters Patent is:
 1. Inan apparatus for cutting with a tape a travelling web of paper beingwound on a first spool and transferring that travelling web onto anempty spool by attaching said tape to said empty spool, the systemcharacterized by:(1) means for supplying a length of repulpable paperfiber stiff tape; (2) an elongated guideway with an elongated open slotfacing upwardly beneath said travelling web and having opposite openends adjacent the side edges of said travelling web, said guidewayreceiving said tape delivered slidingly into one said open end andexiting out of the other said open end; and (3) a brake meansfrictionally engaging said tape.
 2. The apparatus of claim 1 whichadditionally includes a cutting means for laterally partially severingsaid tape between the side edges of said tape, said partially severedtape being automatically completely severed after passage thereof pastsaid brake means when pulled by said tape wrapping about the emptyspool.
 3. The apparatus of claim 2 further including a housing, saidmeans for supplying includes a drum rotatably mounted on said housingand a supply of tape rolled on said drum, said cutting means mountedonto said housing, and a drive means connected to said housing andengaging said tape for feeding said tape through said guideway.
 4. Theapparatus of claim 2 wherein said tape is characterized by a pluralityof lengthwise parallel abutting twisted strands of repulpable paperfiber, said strands being adhered to each other by a water-solubleadhesive.
 5. The apparatus of claim 4 wherein said tape consists of asingle layer of said parallel strands.
 6. The apparatus of claim 2wherein said brake means is characterized by an adjustable pressuresurface on the top of said tape and a support means below said tape. 7.The apparatus of claim 6 wherein said support means is a roller.
 8. Theapparatus of claim 6 wherein said support means is a solid, immobilesurface.
 9. The apparatus of claim 2 wherein said guideway includes anelongated member having a passageway extending between said open endsand communicating with said open slot throughout its length, saidpassageway having a width slightly wider than the width of said tape,said member having at least one inwardly directed shoulder to guide saidtape through said passageway.
 10. The apparatus of claim 9 wherein saidguideway has two inwardly directed shoulders, one of which beinglaterally movable outwardly and spring biased inwardly.
 11. Theapparatus of claim 9 wherein said guideway extends at its exiting end toa position closely adjacent to the edge of the empty spool where saidtape is attached.
 12. The apparatus of claim 2 wherein said drive meansincludes at least one drive roller over which said tape passes afterbeing pulled from said supply roll and before passing through said brakemeans, said drive means including a shaft rotatably mounted to saidhousing and a hand crank means mounted to said shaft for rotating same.13. The apparatus of claim 4 wherein said cutting means includes acentering guide slot for the passage of said tape therein and throughwhich said cutting means passes to partially cut said tape prior tofeeding through said brake means.
 14. The apparatus of claim 13 whereinsaid cutting means is a manually operable guillotine knife whichsubstantially severs said strands between the two outer strands of saidtape.
 15. An apparatus for cutting a travelling web of paper being woundinto a spool and transferring the cut web to an empty spool for winding,said cutting and transferring being accomplished by attaching a tape tothe edge of said empty spool, the apparatus being characterized by:(1) acontinuous length of cutting tape wound on a rotatable drum, said tapebeing thin and stiff and comprising a plurality of lengthwise parallelstrands of twisted repulpable paper fibers positioned side-by-side andbonded to each other by a water-soluble adhesive, said tape being onestrand in thickness; (2) an elongated guideway slightly wider than thewidth of said tape, said guideway having an elongated slot on its upperside and closed on its lower side and having an inwardly directedshoulder, on said upper side along each lateral side of the guideway;said guideway being parallel to and extending substantially the entirelength of said empty spool and being positioned below said travellingweb of paper; (3) a brake means being located between said guideway andsaid drum, said brake means comprising an underneath supporting surfaceand an upper pressure surface adjustable to provide selective frictionalresistance to the passage of said tape therebetween; and (4) cuttingmeans for cutting laterally across said tape to partially sever saidstrands, said cutting means being located between said brake means andsaid drum of tape.
 16. The apparatus of claim 15 further including ahousing on which is mounted said drum of tape, said cutting means, saidbrake means, and a driving roller adapted to pull tape from said drumthrough said cutting means and push said tape through said brake meansand thence through said guideway.
 17. The apparatus of claim 16 whereinsaid driving roller is driven by a manually rotatable crank.
 18. Theapparatus of claim 15 wherein said cutting means includes a manuallyoperable guillotine knife blade laterally disposed from said tape, abacking support having a tape guide slot for centering said tape forcutting by said blade.
 19. The apparatus of claim 15 wherein said brakemeans includes a freely rotatable fixed position roller underneath saidtape and a surface above said tape which is adjustable to press againstsaid tape with a selected pressure.
 20. The apparatus of claim 15wherein said rotatable drum is characterized by two telescopingcylindrical members each having a lateral flange attached to one end ofa tubular cylindrical body, said cylindrical bodies telescoping togetherto produce an assembly of a cylindrical body with two lateral endflanges.
 21. The apparatus of claim 15 which additionally includes twoflanged rollers to receive tape from said drum and lead it to saidguideway.
 22. The apparatus of claim 16 wherein said drum has a centralshaft means around which said drum is rotatable, said shaft means beingmounted in journals having two parallel slots on opposite sides of saidshaft means, said slots sliding into mating notches in said housing. 23.The apparatus of claim 15 wherein said guideway rests upon asubstantially rigid support.
 24. An improved method for cutting atravelling web of paper being wound on a spool and transferring the webafter cutting to an empty spool, the method including a cutting tapeattachable to said empty spool, the tape automatically travellingspirally across said empty spool cutting the web of paper, and windingthe cut portion onto the empty spool; wherein the improvement comprisesthe steps of:(1) feeding the free end of a stiff paper tape from thenear end to the far end of an elongated guideway positioned beneath andextending substantially the width of said travelling web; (2) extendingthe free end of said tape from the far end of said guideway; (3)adhering said free end to said empty spool adjacent the far end thereof;and (4) applying frictional resistance to the removal of said tape fromsaid guideway.
 25. The method of claim 24 further comprising the stepof:(5) partially cutting laterally through said tape adjacent said nearend of said guideway spacedly ahead of the location at which frictionalresistance is applied to said tape.
 26. The method of claim 24 whereinthe uncut portion of said partially cut tape is rupturable automaticallyby the tension produced on said tape during its winding about said emptyspool and cutting and transferring of said web of paper to said emptyspool.
 27. This method of claim 24 wherein said frictional resistance isapplied to squeezing said tape between two surfaces prior to its entryinto said guideway.
 28. The method of claim 24 further comprising thesteps of:(5) dispensing said tape from a continuous roll of tape priorto step (1); (6) partially cutting laterally through said tape adjacentsaid near end of said guideway spacedly ahead of the location at whichfrictional resistance is applied to said tape; and (7) applying anadhesive to the upper face of the free end of said tape prior toadhering said free end to said empty spool.
 29. The method of claim 28wherein step (7) is performed prior to step (1).
 30. The method of claim28 wherein step (7) is performed prior to step (2).
 31. The method ofclaim 30 in which step (2) is performed after step (5) and step (2) isperformed by further feeding said tape from the near end through saidguideway to acontacting position where said free end of said tape isautomatically attached by step (3) to said empty spool.
 32. The methodof claim 24 further comprising the step of (5) applying an adhesive tothe upper face of the free end of said tape.
 33. The method of claim 24further comprising the step of (5) guiding said tape to a positionclosely adjacent said empty roll by said guideway supporting said tapeand having an open upper slot throughout the length of said guidewaywhereby said tape is stripped out of said guideway through said openslot.
 34. The method of claim 24 further comprising the steps of:(5)partially cutting laterally through said tape adjacent said near end ofsaid guideway spacedly ahead of the location at which frictionalresistance is applied to said tape; (6) applying an adhesive to theupper face of the free end of said tape prior to adhering said free endin step (3); and (7) pulling said partially cut tape beyond thefrictional resistance to automatically rupture same.
 35. A method forcutting a travelling web of paper being wound on a spool andtransferring the web after cutting to an empty spool, the methodincluding attaching one end of a cutting tape to the edge of the emptyspool while applying tension to the other end of the tape stretchedbelow the web and across the width of the web, the tape automaticallytravelling spirally across the empty spool, cutting and transferring thecut portion of the web to the empty spool, to be wound thereon, themethod being characterized by the steps of:(1) applying an adhesive tothe upper side adjacent the free end of a stiff paper tape; (2) feedingthe free end through an elongated guideway extending at least from thenear end to the far end of the empty spool and positioned below saidtravelling web, the guideway having an upwardly facing open slot overthe entire length of the guideway to permit stripping of the tape there-through; (3) cutting partially through the tape laterally of itsmidsection adjacent the near end; (4) extending the free end of the tapefrom the far end of the guideway; (5) feeding the free end of the tapeto the empty spool with said adhesive positioned to contact the emptyspool; (6) applying tension to the tape in the guideway causing ruptureof the uncut portion of the partially cut tape; and (7) automaticallystripping the tape from the open side of the guideway as the web is cutand the cut web is transferred to the empty spool.
 36. The method ofclaim 35 wherein step (6) includes the step of (8) providing africtional sliding resistance to the tape between the near end of theguideway and the partially cut end of the tape.
 37. The method of claim36 further comprising the step of (8) providing an excess length of saidtape sufficiently longer than the length of the empty spool to permitthe frictional sliding resistance to provide the tension for a timesufficient to permit the tape at the far end to be adhered to the emptyspool and become spirally wrapped about the spool.
 38. The method ofclaim 35 wherein step (3) includes the step of (8) cutting the tapeformed from a plurality of parallel lengthwise abutting strands oftwisted repulpable paper fiber and one strand thick adhered to eachother by a watersoluble adhesive to produce a tape one strand thick,said cutting step (8) severing substantially all internal strands andnot severing generally the two outside strands running along the sideedges of the tape.
 39. The method of claim 35 further comprising thestep of (8) locating the far end of the guideway to a position closelyadjacent the nip between the-rotating drive roll and the empty spool topermit the feeding step (2) of the tape automatically from the far endinto the nip.
 40. The method of claim 35 further comprising the step (8)dispensing the tape from a roll of tape mounted on a rotating drumsupporting the roll of tape.